The UFC was in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, on Saturday for a solid UFC Abu Dhabi fight night card. The main event saw former light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev taking on short-notice replacement Bogdan Guskov.
Ankalaev was coming off a TKO loss to Alex Pereira in 80-seconds to lose his light heavyweight title. Guskov, meanwhile, was coming off a draw to Jan Blachowicz.
Ultimately, it was Ankalaev who won by fifth-round TKO in a lackluster fight, as although the former champ won, he didn’t impress as many expected. Following UFC Abu Dhabi, here is what I think should be next for the light heavyweight contenders.
Magomed Ankalaev
Magomed Ankalaev returned to the win column with a fifth-round stoppage win over Bogdan Guskov. Ankalaev needed to go out and run through Guskov to get another crack at the belt, as he doesn’t have a ton of fan support. Yet, the Dagestani had a lackluster win, which didn’t help his fan support.
Ankalaev could very well get another title shot, but this performance may lead the UFC to go in another direction. So, I do think Ankalaev will need another fight, and I just see the UFC rebooking the Khalil Rountree bout. It can headline a card later this year, and if Ankalaev wins, he should get a title shot.
Bogdan Guskov
Bogdan Guskov got a great opportunity to enter the top-five of the light heavyweight division at UFC Abu Dhabi. However, Guskov had a lackluster performance as he didn’t do much en route to the fifth-round stoppage loss.
With the loss, Guskov will likely have to fight below him in the rankings. A logical next bout is to face Alonzo Menifield, who deserves a top-10 opponent. The Blachowicz rematch is also a possibility, as even if he loses to Navajo Stirling, the fight still makes sense, but I think an all-action bout against Menifield later this year makes sense.
What do you think should be next for Magomed Ankalaev and Bogdan Guskov after UFC Abu Dhabi?
